


Halloween

by honggjoongie



Series: Ateez Holiday Oneshots [1]
Category: ATEEZ (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Boys Kissing, Demon Kim Hongjoong, Demon Summoning, Demons, Halloween, Halloween Costumes, How Do I Tag, M/M, One Shot, Ouija, seongjoong, side woosan
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-29
Updated: 2020-10-29
Packaged: 2021-03-08 19:08:21
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 11,795
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27261748
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/honggjoongie/pseuds/honggjoongie
Summary: Seonghwa ends up dragged to a Halloween party by his roommates, expecting a night of drunk college students and avoiding the dance floor.When they decide to mess around with a ouija board, he gets more than he bargained for in the form of a short, flirty, black eyed demon.
Relationships: Choi Jongho/Kang Yeosang, Choi San/Jung Wooyoung, Jeong Yunho/Song Mingi, Kim Hongjoong/Park Seonghwa
Series: Ateez Holiday Oneshots [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1990513
Comments: 14
Kudos: 187





	Halloween

**Author's Note:**

> I had this idea not too long ago, and decided to write just a fun little Halloween story.
> 
> I hope you enjoy, and happy Halloween!

“Seonghwa! We’re going to be late!” 

Seonghwa flinches, Wooyoung’s voice piercing through his bedroom door. 

He turns his attention back to his laptop on the desk in front of him, determined to get through another few paragraphs of his paper before he’s dragged out by the three delinquents he calls roommates. His intent is shattered when minutes later the door slams open, a dolled up Wooyoung strolling in with San on his heels. 

“Hwa, you’re not even ready!” Wooyoung gasps, taking in the older’s disheveled appearance.

“You do know that we’re already late, Woo.” Seonghwa says, his eyes still on the screen.

“Yeah, well we’re going to be late even by party standards.” 

Seonghwa turns towards the pair. 

“An angel and a devil, really? I thought you’d go for something a little more original.” He taunts, seeing San’s white outfit, a halo on top of his head, and Wooyoung donned in red, with horns to match. 

“Whatever, we look hot.” Wooyoung dismisses. 

“Aren’t you going to be cold?” Seonghwa rolls his eyes at their costumes’ lack of fabric.

“It’s really not that cold outside.” Wooyoung shrugs.

“Where’s your costume?” San asks, wrapping his arm around Wooyoung’s waist, leaning into his boyfriend. 

“This  _ is _ my costume.” Seonghwa stands, gesturing down at his sweater and jeans. Wooyoung’s eyes run up and down him, calculating. 

“Yeo!” The raven-haired yells suddenly. “We’re going to need your help in here!” 

“I’m ready, really, I’m going as a, uh, drowning in homework college student.” Seonghwa sighs. 

“The point is to dress up as something you’re not, hyung.” Yeosang says, walking into the room.

“Why is Wooyoung dressed as the devil then?” Seonghwa mumbles under his breath. 

“Hey!” The younger calls. 

“Don’t worry Woo, he’s just grumpy because he needs to get laid.” Yeosang adds, earning a glare from Seonghwa.

“I barely want to go tonight at all when I could be working on my paper, so dressing up is out of the question.” Seonghwa says firmly.

“We just want you to have fun Hwa.” Wooyoung says.

“Yeah, we’re worried about you, you’ve been cooped up ever since Sungjin, and that was months ago.” Yeosang chimes in. 

“Come on hyung, it’s Halloween, you have to dress up.” San pouts. 

Seonghwa thinks it’s unfair that he’s being ganged up on, but he knows his friends mean well, and he can’t deny that they’re right, so he relents nonetheless. 

“Even if I wanted to, I don’t have a costume.” He lets out another sigh. Three faces light up around him. 

“I’m closest to your size, so you can borrow something of mine, come on.” San grins, tugging him towards his and Wooyoung’s shared room, the other two following close behind. 

“Cute ears.” Seonghwa turns to Yeosang walking next to him. He touches the tip of the pointed ear that matches the rest of his elven outfit, his costume only slightly more concealing than Wooyoung and San’s.

“Hey, these took forever to put on.” Yeosang swats him away, making Seonghwa raise his hands in defense.

“Don’t worry, I won’t ruin your look before Jongho gets to see it.” Seonghwa teases. A blush settles on Yeosang’s cheeks, but his response is cut short by San pulling Seonghwa into their room. 

San rustles through the closet, pulling out costume after costume in a flurry of fabric and color. Seonghwa sifts through the options, concluding that there’s not a single thing that isn’t sheer, fishnet, or lace.

“Don’t you have anything a little less.. revealing?” Seonghwa asks. 

“What would be the fun in that?” Wooyoung says. 

“I think I have an old costume from last year that will probably fit you.” Yeosang takes pity on him. 

Thirty minutes later Seonghwa finds himself dressed as a pirate, the costume consisting of actual pants and a shirt, to his relief. Although the shirt has a v-neck down almost his whole chest, string threaded across it, and a belt wrapped around his waist. 

“I feel ridiculous.” Seonghwa grumbles, looking at himself in the mirror. 

“Well you look hot.” Yeosang compliments. 

“Okay, we really do have to go now.” Wooyoung urges.

The four of them head out the door, starting towards the house that Yunho, Mingi, and Jongho rented for the party. They’ve been ecstatic about it for weeks, which is one of the main reasons Seonghwa had been roped into going. That and his roommates are a force to be reckoned with when they feel really strongly about something. 

They walk down the street, away from campus and into the nearby neighborhood, the sky dark above them, the sounds of happily screaming kids around them. They pass trick-or-treaters and their subsequent parents who scowl at the four of them and their overly exposing costumes before hurrying away. True to Wooyoung’s word, the air is temperate, orange lawn decorations glowing at them as they pass by. The walk is short, and they soon see a house down the street with people spilling out onto the lawn.

When they walk in the door, the bass of the near deafening music thrums through Seonghwa’s chest, the lights dim, orange and black draped over every surface. A sea of bodies move together, bouncing to the music, the lack of space making Seonghwa feel uneasy. 

“Are you coming?” Wooyoung asks, him and San passing by hand in hand, headed for the center of the dance floor, smiles on their faces. 

“You guys go ahead, I’ll catch up with you later.” Seonghwa waves them off. The two nod and get lost to the sea of Halloween costumes. 

“Do you want to come with me to find Jongho?” Yeosang asks. 

“Sure.” Seonghwa gestures for the blonde to lead the way, following him as they shuffle through the crowd. 

They eventually find Jongho on the outskirts of the large room, the younger smiling when he sees them.

“Wow, you guys look really good!” Jongho greets, although his eyes stick to Yeosang. 

“Thanks, you do too.” Yeosang replies, a blush on his cheeks. Seonghwa nods in agreement, impressed by the other’s vampire costume, complete with a cape and fangs. 

“Here, follow me.” Jongho turns, starting to walk away from the roaring party. 

He leads them into the expansive kitchen, where Seonghwa’s grateful that the music is tolerable, allowing them to talk without having to raise their voices. They see Yunho and Mingi already in the room, dressed in matching costumes. They’re some sort of zombies, striped shirts ripped, their faces and clothes splattered with fake blood.

“Hey guys.” Jongho says to the two.

“Hi!” Yunho replies as the pair turns towards them.

“Hey! Where are thing one and thing two?” Mingi asks. 

“Oh, they wandered off together when we got here.” Seonghwa informs them, the others nodding.

The four of them talk amongst themselves, catching up and complaining about their classes. Seonghwa compliments the decorations they set up, the total dedication to the theme, and Yunho asks about the plans for Wooyoung’s birthday next month. Seonghwa almost forgets about the party raging outside the kitchen, content to talk with his friends, until the song changes, the sound filtering through from the next room.

“Ooh, I love this song!” Yeosang comments. 

“Do you want to dance?” Jongho asks, shifting his eyes away. 

Before answering, Yeosang turns to Seonghwa, “Are you good here?” 

“Yeah, go have fun.” Seonghwa winks, Yeosang smiling before he leaves with the vampire.

“I give them a week.” Yunho says, watching the pair walk out of the room.

“No way, did you see how Jongho was looking at him? I give them a night.” Mingi counters, making Seonghwa laugh. 

“Well we should probably go make the rounds, make sure no one’s burning the place down or anything.” Yunho says. “I don’t mean to leave you by yourself.” He adds.

“Oh, don’t worry about it, I’ll be okay.” Seonghwa assures him. 

“You know, you could try talking to someone…” Yunho trails off. 

“I think Taemin’s had his eye on you for a while.” Mingi hints without an ounce of subtlety.

“Yeah yeah, we’ll see.” Seonghwa huffs with a small smile. The two zombies return his smile and make their way out of the kitchen. 

After a minute, Seonghwa wanders in the direction they’d gone, back into the noise and the heat of the dance floor. He observes his surroundings while he walks, staying on the outside of the room. He spots Wooyoung, pressed against the wall by San, the two deep in a passionate kiss. 

He chuckles, rolling his eyes, and moves on, walking until he finds an empty loveseat pushed out of the way. He sits down, watching the party around him. Through the crowd he sees Jongho and Yeosang dancing, their bodies against each other, moving together. Seonghwa smiles to himself, happy that his friends seem to be getting closer. 

“Do you mind if I sit here?” Seonghwa’s startled out of his thoughts by the words, not having noticed Taemin walking up to him. 

He considers the question, his reflex being to turn him down, but he remembers Yunho and Mingi’s words, thinking back on his friends’ concern. He doesn’t want to make them worried, and he also admits to himself that he’s craved companionship since his last disastrous relationship. 

“No, not at all.” Seonghwa answers. Taemin grins and sits down next to him. 

“Can I get you a drink?” Taemin asks. 

“Oh, no thanks, I have an early class tomorrow.” 

“Ah, okay. What’s your major?” 

Seonghwa learns about Taemin as the conversation progresses, sharing things about himself in return. He learns that the other is a business major, he’s a junior, and he’s from Busan. He also learns that they have absolutely nothing in common. While he’s a nice guy, Seonghwa concludes that there’s no connection, no attraction, and as cheesy as the sentiment is, no spark. 

“Seonghwa, can I just say that you look really amazing tonight.” Taemin speaks up, pulling Seonghwa from his thoughts yet again. 

Seonghwa looks at him, shifting under the compliment. “Oh, uh, thank you.” He says, trying to figure out a way to politely leave the conversation. 

“I’ve actually been meaning to ask you, if maybe sometime you’d want to-”

“Hwa, there you are!” Wooyoung’s loud voice cuts through the music. He walks up to them, his hand in San’s. “Oh, sorry, I didn’t mean to interrupt.” He looks between Seonghwa and Taemin with a smirk.

“Oh, it’s okay. What’s up?” Seonghwa asks. 

“We found a ouija board in one of the rooms!” Wooyoung reports happily. 

“Yunho and Mingi already agreed to do it with us, and Wooyoung convinced Yeosang and Jongho too.” San says. 

“We were going to ask you to join, but if you’re busy, we understand.” Wooyoung says, his voice smug. 

“No, it sounds like fun.” Seonghwa sounds almost too enthusiastic. He turns towards Taemin. “Is it okay if I catch up with you later?” 

“Y-yeah, sure of course.” Taemin puts on a tight smile. 

Seonghwa stands, telling the other goodbye before he follows Wooyoung and San through the crowd, breathing a sigh of relief. They leave the room and walk up the stairs, into a hallway lined with doors. 

“Hyung, I don’t know how to say this, but I never thought you’d actually want to play with a ouija board.” Wooyoung says when the music’s receded behind them, an obvious question in his words. 

“Yeah, I wasn’t exactly feeling it with Taemin.” Seonghwa admits. 

“Well, at least you tried.” San shrugs. Seonghwa notices the frown on Wooyoung’s face, but the younger doesn’t comment again. 

Wooyoung leads them into one of the rooms, Yunho, Mingi, Yeosang, and Jongho already inside. They’re seated on the floor, the ouija board set in the center of them. Wooyoung and San run to join the circle, Seonghwa reluctantly following behind. 

“I can’t believe we’re actually doing this.” Seonghwa murmurs. 

“I still don’t think it’s a good idea..” Mingi adds, his face pale underneath the fake blood. 

“Don’t worry, I’ll protect you.” Yunho teases, moving closer to Mingi. 

Seonghwa sits down next to Yeosang and Jongho, whose thighs are pressed together, completing the circle. 

“It’s going to be  _ fun. _ ” Wooyoung emphasizes. He stands to turn off the light before he sits back down. Seonghwa rolls his eyes. 

The 7 of them manage to fix their fingers on the planchette, and choose Wooyoung to ask the questions. 

“But everyone has to take this seriously, okay? No moving it.” Wooyoung instructs, the rest of the group voicing their compliance. Quiet falls over the circle, all of them focusing on the board in front of them. 

“Is there a spirit here with us?” Wooyoung’s voice rings through the room. 

Nobody breathes or moves while they wait, and Seonghwa would never admit to feeling the tension that vibrates through their circle as they stare at the board, the darkness heavy around them. Until nothing happens, and he feels a little ridiculous for letting himself get caught up in the game. 

“If there’s a spirit in this room, give us a sign.” Wooyoung tries again. 

There’s a chorus of gasps when the planchette starts moving. It slides across the board, Wooyoung reading out the letter once it stops. 

“B” It moves again. 

“O” 

“O” 

There’s a pause. 

“BOO? Okay, who did that!?” Wooyoung yells. His eyes zero in on Yeosang, who breaks into giggles. 

The rest of the group falls into varying levels of laughter and anger at the blonde, who looks far too pleased with himself. 

“I said we have to take this seriously.” Wooyoung pouts. 

“Okay, okay, I’m sorry. Totally serious now.” Yeosang promises. They all return their hands to the board, resuming their quiet focus. 

“What is your name?” Wooyoung asks the silence. 

Everyone stills, waiting, the sounds of the party downstairs fading into the background. 

“Oh, wait!” Yunho blurts suddenly, making them all jump. “Sorry.” He winces. “I just remembered something.” 

He searches through his pocket, pulling out what looks like a small book. 

“I was at a thrift store and found this, I thought it looked cool. They told me it’s for summoning demons.” He says, his voice mockingly spooky.

They all lean in towards him to look at the book. It looks leather, warn and dark brown, the pages wrinkled and torn with time. 

“What does that have to do with the ouija board?” Jongho asks.

“I don’t know, maybe it’ll draw someone out to talk to us?” Yunho shrugs.

“No way, that thing looks like bad news.” Mingi eyes the book warily. 

“Maybe it’s worth a shot.” San adds while Wooyoung reaches over to grab the book from Yunho. 

“Look at this stuff! It’s like, latin.” Wooyoung flips through the pages before he turns back to the first one, examining it closer, “Ooh this looks cool.” 

He starts carefully reading, stuttering out the sounds, his pronunciation undoubtedly atrocious, but he gets through it. They all look around the room when he’s finished, not saying a word, and Seonghwa’s not sure what they’re looking for or what they’re expecting. He’s about to reiterate that this whole thing is ridiculous and suggest rejoining the party when a low rumble starts shaking the walls and furniture around them. 

Seonghwa’s eyes grow wide with shock, panic in his veins. The rest of the group looks equally alarmed, all of them standing and stepping away from the ouija board. The light on the ceiling and the lamps in the room flicker to life, flashing brightly before they all shatter with a pop. 

“What the fuck is happening?” 

“Is this an earthquake?” 

“What do we do!?” 

“I think we’re supposed to get in the bathtub.” 

“No, I thought that was for a tornado.” 

Everyone erupts into a mass of chaos and questions, the room seeming infinitely darker than what it was before. The rumbling stops as suddenly as it had started, everything falling into silence.

“Ugh, what the hell.” The seven of them jump at the unknown voice in the room, whipping around to face the speaker. 

Seonghwa lets out a gasp when he sees a man looking around his age leaning against the wall, his hand on his head, fingers in his brown hair. He’s shorter than everyone in the room, his clothes are clearly not from this time period, and Seonghwa’s blood runs cold when he sees his eyes; every inch of them pitch black, not a speck of white visible. The man stands and straightens, facing the group, all of them taking a step back when his black eyes are trained on them. 

“Why do you all look like you’ve seen a ghost?” His question is met by strained silence. 

“W-who are you?” Seonghwa asks, his voice wavering. “How did you get in here?” 

“I was going to ask the same thing. Last thing I knew I was burning in Hell, and now I’m here.” 

He scans the room, from the group, each of them staring at him with some combination of wide eyes and open mouths, to the ouija board on the floor, to settle on the book still in Wooyoung’s hands. 

“What is that?” He walks up to Wooyoung, who stays frozen in place, and grabs the small book from him, flipping through it. 

“Please tell me you didn’t.” He groans. 

“Uh, I found that at a thrift store, and they told me it’s for summoning demons. We were reading from it for fun…” Yunho explains, his tone almost guilty. 

“You were summoning demons for fun.” The other deadpans. 

“Well we didn’t exactly expect for it to actually work!” Wooyoung snaps out of his shock. 

“If you’re a demon, aren’t you supposed to be like, throwing us around the room or something?” Jongho asks, more mocking than a serious question. 

“Nah, you guys are in luck, you managed to summon one of the only demons in Hell that isn’t interested in causing death and destruction.” The man closes the book in his hands. 

“You’re not going to hurt us?” Seonghwa checks timidly. 

The man turns towards him, his black eyes running up and down his body. 

“Not unless you ask, pretty boy.” He replies with a wink. 

Seonghwa can only stare. Is he… flirting with him? What is happening right now? Nothing makes any sense, but he can’t keep his cheeks from heating in a blush despite his confusion.

“What’s your name?” Yeosang asks the man, Seonghwa immensely grateful that he saved him from having to respond. 

The question makes the man pause, his face thoughtful. 

“I think it was J-something, or was it H? Uhh.. Joon-ho? No. Ho-Jong?” He snaps and points. “Hongjoong! That’s what my name was before I died.” He smiles, seeming proud of himself. “Wait, what year is it?” He asks. 

“It’s 2020.” Seonghwa hears himself answer, his head still spinning from the whole situation. 

“Wow, I guess time flies when you’re having fun.” Hongjoong jokes, strolling around the room, staring at various objects with his head tilted, eyeing the tv like it’ll bite him. 

“Okay, if you don’t start explaining what the fuck is happening, I think Mingi’s going to pass out.” Wooyoung speaks up. 

“Right sorry.” Hongjoong walks back to face the group. “I’m a demon, and you reading from this lovely little book you’ve found summoned me.” 

“Oh my god.” Mingi’s skin pales. 

“But don’t worry, I’m not the ‘exists to cause suffering and chaos’ type of demon.” Hongjoong adds.

“Don’t worry that we summoned a literal demon. Right.” Yunho’s voice is tight.

“You guys aren’t actually buying this, are you?” Yeosang asks, his voice full of disbelief. “This is a costume party. He must’ve just snuck in here without any of us noticing.” 

“Come on, look at his eyes! And what about the lights?” Yunho defends.

“I’m with Yeo on this one, I’m sure all that stuff has some sort of explanation. Maybe it’s a prank or something. It’s gotta be fake.” Jongho voices.

“Of course you’re with Yeosang.” San mumbles, earning a glare from the blonde.

“Okay, normally I wouldn’t care about proving myself, but maybe it’ll teach you not to mess with dumb shit you don’t know anything about again and end up with something more malicious than me.” Hongjoong says. 

He stills, and a static charge fills the room and the walls rattle again, the wood creaking and groaning. The furniture shakes and lifts off the ground, Hongjoong lifting with it, his feet no longer touching the floor. The darkness feels suffocating, a high pitched ring sounding in Seonghwa’s ears. He feels trapped in place, terror in his veins, until everything hits the ground again with a thud, and the room falls into silence again. 

“Anyone still think this is fake?” He asks. Seven horrified faces meet him, and seven heads shake. “Good. And just to clarify, if I wanted to hurt any of you, I would’ve done it long before now, so you can stop looking at me like I’m going to kill you.”

“W- what are we supposed to do now?” Mingi asks the room, shaking where he’s standing. 

“How do we send you back?” Seonghwa directs the question towards Hongjoong. 

“Awe, I’m hurt darling, I thought we had a connection.” The shorter responds with mock offense. 

“Well you can’t stay here.” Seonghwa ignores his remark, refusing to acknowledge the pet name. 

“Okay, okay. Do you have somewhere we can go that’s less… loud?” Hongjoong relents. 

“We can go back to our apartment.” Seonghwa says. He can’t stop to think about what just happened, or what any of this means. 

“Hwa, are you sure that’s a good idea?” San asks. 

“It’ll be fine, we just need to figure this out somewhere that’s not so fucking loud.” Seonghwa runs his hands through his hair. 

“I can’t believe this is happening. This shit isn’t supposed to be real.” Yeosang says, speaking to no one in particular.

The rest of the group accepts Seonghwa’s plan for lack of a better one, and they follow him out the door, leaving behind the unnaturally dark room. They walk down the hallway, getting closer to the source of the raucous noise. Seonghwa sees Hongjoong eye Wooyoung, who’s stiffly walking next to him. 

“Nice costume.” Hongjoong teases the other, his gaze lingering on the horns on his head. 

“Well we didn’t think we’d meet an actual demon tonight.” Wooyoung stammers. 

“If only the devil were as cute as you.” Hongjoong smirks. 

Wooyoung promptly turns a deep shade of red as San steps closer to him, wrapping an arm around his waist and glaring at the demon. 

Hongjoong just chuckles, and Seonghwa thinks this night couldn’t get any more bizarre. 

They reach the stairs, and Seonghwa turns to Hongjoong. “We’re just walking out, don’t touch anything or talk to anyone.” He instructs.

“Bossy. I like it.” Hongjoong grins. 

Seonghwa huffs, and leads the group back into the party. 

He keeps his eyes on Hongjoong as they weave through the crowd, the other wide eyed at the dancing bodies, the flashing lights and blaring music. Seonghwa’s focused on reaching the front door when he’s pulled to the side abruptly. 

“Hey Seonghwa, I was hoping I’d catch you again tonight.” Taemin smiles at him. 

Seonghwa blinks, taking a minute to remember their conversation earlier in the night. It feels like it was ages ago. 

“I wanted to ask you if you’d like to go out sometime.” Taemin says. 

His eyes are hopeful, and Seonghwa can’t deal with this right now, can’t think of a way to let him down easy with the pressing issue of dealing with a demon swirling in his head. 

“Seonghwa, are you coming?” Hongjoong stands next to him, looking up at him. 

“Oh, I’m sorry. I didn’t realize you were with someone.” Taemin’s face falls.

“I’m sorry, I just really have to go.” Seonghwa gets out. 

He feels guilt twist in his chest, but he doesn’t have time to stay and rectify the situation, so he hopes his eyes convey his sincere apologies as he turns away. While they work their way through the party, Seonghwa doesn’t miss the smug smile on Hongjoong’s face, and he rolls his eyes, ignoring the implications and focusing on the matter at hand. 

He checks that the rest of their group is still in tow as they finally reach the front door. He’s more than ready to have some quiet, some room to think, and something to smell other than sweat and beer. He goes to open the door, but the handle doesn’t budge. He tugs harder on it, but it’s like trying to open a concrete wall. 

“What the fuck?” His voice gets drowned out. 

He spins around, ready to ask the group what to do when he sees Hongjoong still next to him, alarmed and fixated on something across the room.

“Hongjoong, what’s wrong?” He pulls on the other’s arm.

“We need to get everyone out of here right now.” Hongjoong answers, his eyes never leaving whatever they’re locked onto through the crowd. 

“Well I don’t know how we’re going to do that when the door won’t open.” Seonghwa says. 

“What?” Hongjoong blinks, snapping out of his trance. 

He moves to try to open the door as Seonghwa had, and when it doesn’t work, by the look on his face, Seonghwa knows that means something is very wrong.

“Hongjoong, what’s happening?” He asks, and then the house is plunged into darkness. 

Everything shuts off, the music, the lights, the electricity. The guests filling the house break into complaints and confusion, all of them standing and unsure what to do. 

A shrill scream tears through the house, clearly filled with fear, and the confused calm breaks into panicked chaos. People scramble over each other to find the source of the scream, or to get out. Hongjoong moves to walk into the crowd, but Seonghwa stops him with a hand on his wrist. 

“Hongjoong, what the fuck is happening?” He raises his voice to be heard over the frenzy. 

  
“There are three more demons here. They locked the doors.” Hongjoong tells him, his voice tight. “They’re the demons I was talking about, the ones who cause chaos and suffering. They’re not going to let anyone go.”

Seonghwa’s blood runs cold, and he releases Hongjoong’s wrist with a gasp. Hongjoong pays him no mind, frantically flipping through the book he’d taken from Wooyoung. He stops on a page and shoves the book into Seonghwa’s shaking hands.

“Go back upstairs and draw this symbol on the ground, as big as you can. It doesn’t matter with what.” He orders. Seonghwa stays still, his eyes wide in shock. “Go!” Hongjoong yells, and Seonghwa jolts before he starts moving. 

“Come on.” Seonghwa calls to the rest of the group, determined to follow through on Hongjoong’s instructions, and they all nod, starting back the way they’d come, heading towards the stairs. 

His focus is on their destination when more screaming originates from the middle of the living room, the people jumping away from the source. Seonghwa freezes when he sees Hongjoong holding onto a thrashing figure, the house rumbling. He shakes his head and continues walking, trusting Hongjoong to know what he’s doing. 

When they’re near the steps, the figure breaks away from Hongjoong’s grasp, darting forwards, crashing into their group. It looks at them with its deathly black eyes, its face contorted with anger, and Seonghwa can only watch as Jongho, Wooyoung, and Yeosang are thrown back and slammed into the wall behind them before they drop to the ground, crumpling onto the floor with a chorus of pained cries. 

Hongjoong runs up and flings himself onto the demon again, the creature letting out an inhuman screech. 

“Go, now! Hurry!” Hongjoong yells at them, and Seonghwa helps pull his friends up before they rush through the still scrambling crowd, running up the stairs.

He bursts back into the room they were in before, the others following him, half of them limping through the door. He rips through the drawers in the bedside tables, tears up the contents of the desk under the window, until he finds a marker. As he swipes his hand over the floor, flinging anything on it to the side, he hears thundering commotion coming from downstairs. 

“Seonghwa, what’s happening?” 

He ignores the question to focus on looking at the picture in the book, starting to recreate the picture on the ground with the marker, trying to keep the lines even and his hand steady. Just as he draws the final line, Hongjoong barrels through the door, the figure held in his arms lashing out at the shorter, letting out howls that shake the house. 

With one last surge of static energy, Hongjoong shoves the demon into the circle that Seonghwa had drawn, and the figure stills, staring at them with black eyes as he seethes. 

“Very cute.” The demon snarls. 

Hongjoong ignores the comment and turns towards Seonghwa, his chest heaving. He holds his hand out, and Seonghwa hands him the small book again. He flips to another page, and hands it back. 

“Here, say this, but only once I’m gone, unless you want to send me back too.” Hongjoong says. “Which I wouldn’t advise, given I’m going downstairs to get the other two demons.” 

He spins around, heading for the door before he pauses. “And don’t talk to it, don’t listen to anything it says, just read the whole page.” He finishes, and hurries out the door. 

Seonghwa stares down at the book in his hands, the latin words swimming on the page. He looks up and turns his head to see his friends huddled behind him, Yeosang and Jongho sitting against the wall with Mingi and Yunho kneeling next to them, San standing in front of Wooyoung protectively. He turns back to see the demon looking directly at him, a vile grin spread over its face. 

“We’re going to tear each one of you apart.” He says. 

Seonghwa looks down at the book, his breaths coming faster. 

“Pathetic you think you can actually trust a demon. He just wants to get rid of us so he can kill you himself.” He sneers. 

Seonghwa squeezes his eyes shut against the words before he opens them again, starting to read the words on the page. He briefly glances up to see the smile fall off the demon’s face. The latin feels alien in his mouth, tangling his tongue, but he pushes through, keeping his voice as even as he can manage. 

The demon starts screaming while he talks, and doesn’t stop. The room shudders violently around them, Seonghwa’s head filled with a piercing sound. He winces against the feeling, but continues letting the words fall from his lips. 

When he finishes, the demon lets out a final roar before it falls to the ground in a pile of fabric, convulsing wildly. The seven of them watch as the demon melts into black, seeping through the floor until nothing is left, the room returning to a dark silence. 

Seonghwa lets out a breath, his heart racing. 

“Are you guys okay?” He runs to kneel by Yeosang and Jongho’s sides, glancing up at Wooyoung. 

“Yeah, I’m fine.” Jongho waves him off, wincing. 

“I think his ankle is sprained.” Yunho says. 

“Yeah, I mean I’m okay too, but that hurt like a bitch.” Yeosang adds. 

Seonghwa stands when the door opens again and Hongjoong walks in, a frown on his face. 

“What’s going on? Where are the other demons?” Seonghwa asks. 

“Well the good news is everyone got out of the house okay. The bad news is the other two demons got out too.” Hongjoong deadpans. 

“What do we do now?” Seonghwa’s chest feels tight.

“Well we can either let them go out there and kill a bunch of people, or we can go get them and bring them back here to exorcise them.” Hongjoong’s words are dripping with ridicule. 

“Okay, I guess we’re going to go get them then.” Seonghwa disregards Hongjoong’s hostility.

“I’ll go with you.” Wooyoung says before he stumbles when takes a step forward. 

“No, absolutely not.” San’s voice leaves no room for debate. 

“Well we can’t let him go demon hunting alone.” Yeosang voices from where he’s sitting. 

“I won’t be alone, I’ll be with Hongjoong.” Seonghwa gestures to the shorter, who’s leaning against the wall staring at his nails disinterestedly. 

“Who’s also a demon...” Yunho says.

“Hey! He’ll be safer with me than he ever could be with you humans.” Hongjoong barks back.

“Listen, Hongjoong handled that first demon on his own, so we know he can.” Seonghwa says. “I’ll go with him by myself, Yunho, Mingi, and San, you stay here with them and watch over the house. If anyone comes back here or anything happens, call me.” 

They all reluctantly voice their agreements and Seonghwa stands to walk towards the door. 

“Try not to summon any more demons while we’re gone.” Hongjoong comments before he follows him. 

They walk out the door and down the stairs, Seonghwa nearly gasping at the state of the house. 

It’s like a tornado went through the aftermath of the party, trash and debris scattered over every surface, everything covered in darkness from the blown lights, glass crunching underneath their feet and furniture fallen, broken, and disorganized. Seonghwa sends out a silent apology to whoever this house was rented from. 

They go out the front door, the air cool where it hits Seonghwa’s skin, and he shivers. The streets have grown deserted with the late hour, only a few straggling trick-or-treaters and drunken teenagers milling around the darkness. 

“Seonghwa, what did you mean when you told them to call you? How would they do that?” Hongjoong speaks up.

“Oh, uh with this.” Seonghwa answers, pulling his phone out of his pocket. 

Hongjoong looks at it with curiosity, and Seonghwa unlocks it, handing it to him. He watches as Hongjoong squints against its bright artificial light, poking at the screen, tilting his head every time he swipes his finger, his eyes wide with wonder. Seonghwa chuckles, refusing to admit that it’s cute.

“So you talk to each other through these things?” Hongjoong hands him the phone back, Seonghwa nodding, “Huh, weird.”

“So how does this demon hunting thing work?” Seonghwa asks, shoving his phone back in his pocket and looking down the street both ways, a gust of wind rustling his hair.

“Well, point whichever way is towards the most people, and we’ll head that way.” Hongjoong replies. 

“Uh, I guess we can go towards campus, I’m sure there are lots more parties that way.” He points to the left. Hongjoong nods and starts walking. Seonghwa pauses before he follows him.

“Don’t you have some sort of like, demon sense or something that can lead you to them?” 

Hongjoong gives him an incredulous look. “You’re lucky you’re pretty.” 

“Hey, like an hour ago I didn’t even think demons were real. There’s not exactly a manual for this.” Seonghwa defends, a blush on his cheeks. 

“Well there kind of is. Your friend bought it at a ‘thrift store’ and it’s in Latin.” 

Seonghwa huffs as they continue walking. He eyes Hongjoong next to him, and his head falls back to the demon in the room telling him he couldn’t trust him. Hongjoong had said not to listen to anything he says, but he doesn’t know who to listen to. 

“Hey Hongjoong?” He tries. 

“Yeah?” The other turns his head to look at him. 

“You say you’re not like other demons, but how do I know you’re not lying?”

“Well I helped get rid of the first demon and get the people out of that house, didn’t I?” 

“Yeah, I guess that’s true.” Seonghwa pauses. “But why then? Why are you different?” 

Hongjoong takes in a breath. “There are two ways to become a demon.” He starts. “The main way is someone dies, is deemed unworthy for heaven, and gets sent down. I went the other way.” He looks forward again, his pace slowing as he walks. 

“My sister got sick. She was going to die, and the doctors couldn’t do anything for her. A man came up to me and said he could cure her, that she would live the rest of her life healthily, and I could get 10 more years with her.” 

Seonghwa watches Hongjoong’s face as he talks, the other lost in the past.

“He gave me the selling my soul speech, and I said yes. I even signed with blood and the whole thing. I didn’t even know if I believed any of it, but I was willing to try anything. The next day, my sister was cured. She was walking, and jumping, and laughing. It was the first time I’d seen her smile in months.” Hongjoong chuckles, bittersweet. 

“Just like the man had said, she was completely healthy. It was an amazing 10 years with her, my family was happy and together again. But when it was over, I just dropped dead.” Seonghwa’s heart drops, but Hongjoong says it easily. “I’m sure my family is gone now, but I’ll never regret getting to let them live the rest of their lives happily.” 

“So where does the demon part come into play?” Seonghwa asks. 

“Well the people that sell their souls don’t usually get summoned back. They stay in Hell long enough to become the same as the rest of the demons; evil. It just so happens that I hadn’t been down there long enough to lose my humanity when you and your friends pulled me back up.” Hongjoong finishes. 

“Well I’m glad we did. You don’t deserve to be down there.” Seonghwa says. 

Hongjoong gives him a small smile, and Seonghwa swears that it doesn’t make his chest feel warm. As Hongjoong looks at him, Seonghwa finds himself wondering what his eyes would look like if they had color. 

Their attention is drawn towards a dark figure ahead of them on the sidewalk, stalking after a group of teenagers.

“That’s him.” Hongjoong says. 

“What do we do?” Seonghwa asks. 

“You, nothing. Just stand there and look pretty. This demon is new, young, driven by greed but weak and reckless, I’ll be able to handle it.” Hongjoong starts forward, but Seonghwa stops him with a hand on his arm. 

“Wait, but are you sure there’s nothing I can do to help?” 

Hongjoong sighs. “Do you still have the book?” 

Seonghwa nods, pulling it out of his pocket. 

“Okay, I’ll deal with the demon, but if something goes wrong, just say the exorcism. It’ll try to get away, but this will weaken it enough to give you a shot.” Hongjoong tells him. 

“But wouldn’t that send you back too?” Seonghwa tilts his head. 

“That’s why it’s a last resort.” Hongjoong says. 

“Just, be careful, okay?” Seonghwa adds before he can stop himself.

Hongjoong nods, his black eyes meeting Seonghwa’s before he turns to walk towards the demon. 

Seonghwa follows him, watching as Hongjoong clamps a hand around the demon’s arm and steers it away, the group of teenagers walking out of sight. The demon’s head snaps towards Hongjoong, its face paling in recognition. It moves to pull away from Hongjoong, but the shorter pulls both of its wrists behind its back, shoving it forward to walk in front of him back the way they came. 

The demon flails in his hold, insults and threats being thrown from its lips as it tugs violently against Hongjoong while being forced through the streets. Seonghwa stays close behind, the book in his hand, ready to help in the only way he can if need be, but it seems that Hongjoong is able to maintain whatever force he’s exuding over the demon to keep it in check. 

Seonghwa feels almost dazed while he walks behind Hongjoong, everything around him feeling dreamlike. He looks at Hongjoong’s silhouette in front of him, his heart flipping when he thinks about the shorter. He remembers his story, how selfless he’d been, twisting every preconceived notion Seonghwa had made since he found out Hongjoong was a demon. He attempts to navigate his thoughts while they navigate the streets, not making much headway in untangling the confusion in his chest. 

With both of them eager to get the demon off the streets and deal with the last one, their steps are hurried for the duration of the walk, and the house comes back into view faster than Seonghwa realizes. He helps Hongjoong maneuver the still struggling demon through the front door and up the stairs, opening the door to the room to see it pleasantly lit. 

His friends have replaced the lightbulbs in the room so they don’t have to sit in the darkness, all of them sitting on either the bed or the couch in the room, the tv against the wall playing at a low volume which gets switched off when Hongjoong and Seonghwa walk in. 

Seven pairs of eyes watch as Hongjoong handles the demon through the room, the lights flickering with the fighting energy until Hongjoong makes the final push and the demon’s rendered ineffective when it lands within the symbol drawn on the floor, the figure glaring at them with ink filled eyes, but remaining silent.

Seonghwa watches as Hongjoong steps back from the symbol, running his hand through his hair. His chest is heaving with the effort of combating the demon. He pulls on his bottom lip with his teeth, and Seonghwa doesn’t notice himself licking his lips in response.

He shakes his head and walks towards Hongjoong.

“Hey, are you okay?” His hand ends up on the shorter’s shoulder when he asks. 

“I’m a demon, it’ll take a lot more than that to hurt me.” Hongjoong smirks. 

“Just make sure you get far enough away while we do this, okay? I’ll come down when it’s done.” Seonghwa gestures towards the demon. 

“Yes of course dearest, your concern is sweet.” Hongjoong teases. 

Seonghwa pushes him playfully, heat on the tips of his ears. Hongjoong chuckles and turns to walk back out the door, heading down the stairs. 

Seonghwa faces the demon with the small book in his hand, the demon staring him down, but thankfully not talking like the first had. While Seonghwa knows what to expect, his pulse still races when he starts reading the exorcism and the room quakes. 

The words come faster the second time, and Seonghwa ignores the flickering lights and ringing in his ears, his eyes locked onto the page, his voice raised over the demon’s pained shrieks. When the last word leaves his lips he watches as the demon disintegrates and fades away, leaving them in silence once again. 

He lets his breath out in a sigh and faces his friends, taking in their varying degrees of awe and unease. 

“Are you guys okay?” He asks. 

“Yeah, we’ve been making sure they’re taken care of.” Yunho informs him. 

“We’ve been worried about you.” Yeosang adds. 

“I’m okay too. It was actually kinda nice, demon hunting aside and all.” Seonghwa admits, a small smile finding its way onto his face. 

“Seonghwa, I just have to ask.” Wooyoung says. “You’re not… falling for Hongjoong, are you?” 

Seonghwa freezes. “I- uh, no, no of course not. Why would you ask that?” 

“It’s just, the way you were talking to him. And you’re looking at him different.” 

“No, I’m not. I don’t- he’s a demon.” Seonghwa stutters. He’s met with six doubtful looks, and he averts his eyes. 

“Now, I- I have to go, so.. You guys just stay here and keep being safe.” He instructs. 

The others voice their goodbyes before Seonghwa turns and walks out the door, resolutely  _ not _ thinking about Wooyoung’s question. 

He finds Hongjoong in the dark living room, bathed in the blue light of the tv that he managed to switch on. He’s poking at the xbox controller, staring between it and the tv like they objects are from another planet. His nose is scrunched in bewilderment, and Seonghwa has to hide an endeared chuckle. Hongjoong straightens when he notices Seonghwa, turning the tv off and walking over to him. 

“Did it go okay?” He asks. 

“Yeah, it did.” Seonghwa confirms. 

“How are your friends doing?” 

Seonghwa feels warmth wash over him from the question. “They’re okay, they’re taking care of each other.” 

“Good.” Hongjoong nods. “Well I guess we should probably go try to stop the last demon before it kills people.” 

“Right.” Seonghwa agrees, gesturing for Hongjoong to lead, the two of them leaving the house again.

The streets are almost completely deserted, the stars shining above them as night settles fully over them, leaves blowing by in the breeze. 

“So what’s the plan?” Seonghwa asks.

“We’ll go back where we found the second demon, the third one shouldn’t have gotten much farther. They tend to be very distracted.” 

Seonghwa nods, and they head down the road for the second time. When another gust of wind hits him, Seonghwa realizes he’s still dressed as a pirate, Hongjoong’s clothes also looking like an old-timey costume next to him. He nearly laughs at the absurdity of it all. 

They walk in silence for a while, listening and watching for anything out of the ordinary. Seonghwa keeps glancing at Hongjoong, taking in his profile, the way his lips look soft and inviting, and then promptly turning away, just to do the same thing again moments later. 

It’s infuriating, and he decides he needs something as a distraction. 

“Hey Hongjoong,” he starts, the other humming in response, “what year are you from?”

“It’s hard to remember now, honestly, a lot of little details seem to have slipped away. But I know it was in the 1900s, somewhere around the 50s? Maybe earlier?” Hongjoong tilts his head in thought. 

“What was it like before you died?” Seonghwa pauses. “What were you like?” 

Hongjoong seems to think for a minute before he responds. 

“I mainly remember my sister and my family. I loved my family of course, but I didn’t want the life they wanted for me. They wanted me to find a nice girl, get married, and work for the rest of my life.” 

“What did you want?” Seonghwa asks. 

“I basically wanted the opposite of that. Even the girl part, but I would never tell anyone that.” Hongjoong stops, thinking. “I’m only telling you because I noticed your two friends seemed really close. Do people not care about that now?” 

Seonghwa thinks over the question. “Some people still do, but it’s a lot more normalized now. It’s getting better.”

Hongjoong hums in understanding before he returns to the previous topic. “I did want to work, but not the way they wanted. I was interested in the wrong things, the wrong careers, the wrong people, and we fought about it until the day I died.” 

“I’m sorry.” Seonghwa feels it’s not enough, but doesn’t know what else to offer. 

“It’s okay. I loved them and they loved me, they just didn’t understand.” He shrugs. “So what about you? What do you do in this strange and exciting world?” 

“Nothing very strange or exciting.” Seonghwa admits. “I’m a junior in college studying to become a teacher and make next to no money, which my family isn’t too thrilled about either.” 

“But it makes you happy?” Hongjoong looks at him. 

“Yeah, yeah it makes me happy.” Seonghwa is confident to answer. 

“Good. That’s what matters.” 

They lapse into silence again, Seonghwa battling himself over whether or not he should ask what he’s been itching to find out about since Hongjoong showed up. Eventually curiosity wins out. 

“Hongjoong, is it okay if I ask… what was Hell like?” Seonghwa rips the bandaid off. 

Hongjoong seems to shut down next to him when the question leaves his lips, and he instantly feels guilty for asking.

“Luckily I’ve forgotten a lot of it since being summoned, but what I can remember is worse than you could ever imagine.” He stares straight ahead as he talks, his voice tight and haunted. “I would really- really prefer not to talk about it.” 

“Of course, I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have asked.” Seonghwa looks down at the ground, his face hot. 

“It’s okay, it’s kind of an obvious question, I expected it at some point.” Hongjoong tells him. “I’m sorry I can’t tell you more.” 

“No, please don’t be sorry.” Seonghwa says with a small reassuring smile. “So what happens after the third demon is gone?” He asks, trying to get away from the subject.

“What do you want to happen?” 

“I don’t know, I have no idea how any of this works…” Seonghwa trails off. 

“I can’t say I have any ideas either, I thought I was gone for the rest of eternity, and now here I am.” Hongjoong says. 

“Well I don’t know if there’s another option, but all I know is sending you back down there doesn’t feel right.” 

Hongjoong opens his mouth to say something, but is interrupted by a blood chilling scream that fills the streets. Both of them snap their heads to the side to see a woman running out of a nearby alley, throwing a terrified glance over her shoulder as she flees. 

Hongjoong and Seonghwa look at each other before they both break into a sprint towards the alley. They slam to a halt when they see the third demon with his hand on a man’s throat, a woman lying unmoving on the ground near the entrance of the alleyway, a small pool of blood around her. 

The demon turns its head when it sees them rushing into the darkness, dropping the squirming man in his hands to greet them with a malicious sneer. 

“Well, if it isn’t my friends from the party.” It greets, it’s black endless abyss eyes on them.

“Check on her.” Hongjoong tells Seonghwa.

He leaves Hongjoong’s side, breathing a sigh of relief when he feels the girl’s weak pulse, and calls an ambulance, telling them where they are. When he’s done he sees Hongjoong still staring down the demon who’s looking back with mild disinterest. 

“Seonghwa, get behind me.” Hongjoong instructs, and Seonghwa listens, moving to stand behind the shorter. 

“Ah, Hongjoong good to see you again.” The demon says, and Seonghwa sees Hongjoong stiffen in front of him. 

It turns its attention to Seonghwa. “This one was really popular down under. He always tried to be the good guy, to do what was right even though he was in literal Hell. Ugh, disgusting.” It pauses. “You know sweetheart, if you want someone who can really show you a good time, you can always stick with me.” The demon winks at Seonghwa, making his blood run cold.

Hongjoong seems to break out of the trance he was in, taking a threatening step towards the demon with a snarl on his lips.

“Oh, did I hit a nerve?” The demon’s gaze flickers between Hongjoong and Seonghwa, opening his mouth in realisation. “It seems you’ve fallen for the little human.” It mocks. 

Hongjoong doesn’t respond, instead taking another step forward, but the demon doesn’t flinch. 

“This is between me and you, leave him out of it.” Hongjoong says through clenched teeth. 

“Oh, but playing with him seems so much more fun now.” The demon smiles, its features sickening to Seonghwa, who takes a step back. 

Before either of them can react, the demon blows past Hongjoong and slams into Seonghwa, his hand clamping down on Seonghwa’s neck as he crashes against the brick wall behind him. He tries to call out for Hongjoong, but no sound comes out, his throat being crushed, making his lungs burn. 

His vision starts to fade, black spots closing in as he claws against the hand like concrete against his neck. His body throbs from the impact with the wall, the smell of iron filling his nose, and he hears a demonic chuckle. 

His eyes are starting to slip closed when the demon is wrenched off of him, making him fall to the concrete, coughing against his sore throat. 

He looks up, blinking through the tears in his eyes to see Hongjoong send the demon across the alley to crash into the wall on the other side. It hits the ground and scrambles back to its feet with a growl, lurching towards Hongjoong. 

The two collide, energy and ringing filling the alleyway, Seonghwa’s head spinning while he watches the battle. Hongjoong fights with rage, but the demon counters it with precision, cold eyes and taunting smiles. After the demon gets tired of the back and forth, each of them getting hits in, but neither winning the upper hand, it moves away from Hongjoong, pausing. 

“As fun as it’s been catching up with you, I think I’ll head back to that house, see if I can’t finish what we started when we were summoned, hm?” 

Seonghwa sees the demon flash crooked teeth before he’s thrown back again, his muscles screaming when he hits the wall and the ground for the second time, and he hears Hongjoong let out a pained grunt next to him. 

His head feels dizzy when he lifts it, and he hears sirens in the distance, but then Hongjoong is in front of him, his voice urgent. 

“Seonghwa, we have to go, now. He’s going to kill your friends.” 

His words slice through the fog in Seonghwa’s mind, and he jolts up, his eyes wide. Hongjoong reaches out a hand to pull him up, and he gets to his feet, swaying slightly. He wastes no time breaking into a run, Hongjoong behind him, and they tear through the streets, the air biting at Seonghwa’s skin. 

His thoughts are running with what the demon said, with pictures of his friends, defenseless against the sinister creature. He has to help them, can’t focus on anything but getting there before it’s too late. His chest heaves with the effort of running, but it aches with the images his mind is throwing at him, with the fear that’s clutching at his heart.

He doesn’t stop running, ignoring the burn in his legs, pushing himself to go faster when they finally turn down the right street. He briefly checks that Hongjoong is still on his heels before they cross the final distance to the house, a chill running through Seonghwa when he sees the front door left ajar. 

They burst into the house, and Seonghwa immediately hears raised voices and commotion coming from above them. His legs move before he realizes it, carrying him up the stairs and into the room that had previously been peaceful and safe. 

Now, the lights are flickering violently, all of his friends either lying unconscious or cowering away from the demon standing in front of the door. San hides Wooyoung, facing the demon, who flicks a finger, San flying out of the way as the demon stalks towards Wooyoung, who can only tremble, frozen where he’s standing. 

“Hey, asshole.” Hongjoong calls, stepping in front of Seonghwa. 

The demon spins around, a revolting smile on its face. “How nice of the lovebirds to join us.” 

Hongjoong doesn’t entertain the demon by replying, he instead lunges forward, his fists colliding with the demon, the two of them tumbling to the ground. The room rattles with the impact of the two demons, and Hongjoong ends up underneath the other, his head snapping to the side with a blow to his cheek.

The demon stands, lifting Hongjoong by his throat and forcing him against the wall, Hongjoong grasping desperately at the hand around his throat, gasping for air. 

Seonghwa gulps, his hands clenched in fists, and he runs forward, connecting his fist with the demon’s face. The demon barely flinches, but it releases its hold on Hongjoong, who falls to the floor in a fit of coughs, to turn towards Seonghwa, its face a gnarled mixture of anger and amusement.

“That was a stupid move, lover boy.” 

It takes a step forward, Seonghwa bracing for a blow, but before it comes Hongjoong throws himself at the demon, throwing him off balance, making both of them tumble again. The demon lets out a growl, standing to face Hongjoong, but its face falls with surprise and rage when it sees that it ended up in the symbol drawn on the floor. 

Seonghwa realizes, with horror, that Hongjoong is in the circle with it. 

The two of them stare each other down, neither moving. Seonghwa sees his friends, now all awake, start to stand, gathering themselves and watching the two demons with timid anticipation. 

“Seonghwa, what are you waiting for? Say the exorcism!” Wooyoung calls.

Seonghwa stares down at the book in his hands, and looks back up at Hongjoong. He can’t make his mouth move, can’t make his voice work. 

“I- I can’t do it.” He hears himself say.

“What do you mean you can’t?” Yeosang asks, astonished. 

“Seonghwa.” Hongjoong’s voice draws his attention back to him. “You have to say it, you have to end this.” 

The room seems to close in on them, the demon growing impatient, the lights dimming. 

Seonghwa’s mind flashes back to Hongjoong when he’d asked him about Hell, the haunted look on his features, the fear in his voice. The way Hongjoong’s focus lingers on everything around him with wonder and longing, the reason he’d become a demon in the first place. He knows that there’s no way he can damn Hongjoong to Hell, if not only for Hongjoong, then for himself. 

“I can’t send you back.” Seonghwa takes a step forward. 

“You have to!” Hongjoong pleas. 

“I won’t!” He takes the final step forward. 

“Seonghwa don’t!” 

He rubs a line in the symbol, breaking its seal. He hears a bloodcurdling laugh, looking up to see the demon’s black eyes on him, an unnaturally wide smile returning to its features. 

Wooyoung runs forward, marker in hand, immediately connecting the lines of the symbol again, but it’s too late.

“Guess you aren’t done playing, huh?” The demon raises its hand, looking entertained, calm in the face of the chaos it's causing. 

Seonghwa doesn’t register what’s happening, the room spinning before his head collides with the corner of the nearby desk, pain exploding from the impact as his body falls heavily to the floor. He lifts his hand to his head, pulling it away covered in a thin layer of blood. He stays limp where he landed, unable to bring himself to get up, his vision blurry and his head throbbing. 

Trying to force his eyes to focus, he makes out the demon walking towards him, nausea churning in his stomach, his limbs like lead. 

Before the demon can reach him, Hongjoong is on it again, steering it away from Seonghwa, grunting with the effort of keeping it at bay. He takes blow after blow from the demon, but doesn’t back down, keeping its focus on him rather than Seonghwa or his friends. 

Seonghwa pushes against the floor, trying to stand and help, but the world tilts and sways, and he lays back down when spots invade his vision again. Fear fills his veins when Hongjoong tires, the demon’s attacks gaining momentum while Hongjoong loses it. 

He feels the ground shake underneath him, the walls rattling, the furniture toppling over. Seonghwa’s pounding head fills with ringing, and he screws his eyes shut against the pain. 

When he opens them again, everything swimming in darkness, he sees Hongjoong, his chest heaving. The demon’s smirk slips off its face when the room thickens with energy, and Hongjoong lets out a broken cry, slamming everything in him against the demon, sending it backwards, landing in the symbol in the middle of the room. 

The demon screams, fury radiating from it, but Hongjoong ignores it to run to Seonghwa’s side.

“Seonghwa, oh my god, are you okay?” 

Seonghwa nods his head, instantly wincing when the action makes pain radiate through his skull.

“You have to go.” He slurs. 

Hongjoong’s face falls, his demeanor clouding over with sadness. 

“Downstairs- have to go downstairs.” He hurries to clarify, desperate to keep that expression from Hongjoong’s face. 

“Oh, of course.” Hongjoong nods, taking the old book that Seonghwa hands him with shaky hands. 

He helps Seonghwa sit up, his back leaning against the desk, making sure he’s steady before he steps back. “I’ll be right back.” 

He faces Seonghwa’s friends, Wooyoung stepping forward to grab the book from him. With one last glance towards Seonghwa, Hongjoong walks out of the room, closing the door behind him. 

Seonghwa works on staying upright while he watches Wooyoung eye the demon seething in the symbol. It starts talking, trying any and every tactic to get Wooyoung to stop, but the other tumbles through the Latin, bracing himself against the demon. 

The demon finally falls silent, collapsing into itself before it falls to the floor, the room stilling as it disappears. 

The seven of them breathe heavily when it’s over, their eyes on the place the demon was standing, awe on their faces, disbelief that it’s finally over. San is the first to break the stillness, running to Seonghwa’s side and kneeling down next to him. 

“Are you okay, can you stand?” He asks. 

Seonghwa nods, and San grabs his arm, slowly helping him stand, letting him lean on him when he wobbles. Yeosang and Wooyoung are by his side next, Yeosang offering his support for his other arm. Yunho, Mingi and Jongho walk towards them last, all three of them pale, their eyes wide. 

“You guys should go home.” Seonghwa tells the three of them.

“But hyung, what about you?” Jongho asks.

“I’ll be okay, we’re going to go home too. Please, just go and rest, we’ll figure out everything later, I promise.” 

They glance at each other, silently coming to a decision. “Okay, but let us know if you need  _ anything.”  _ Yunho emphasizes. 

“Of course, now go.” Seonghwa demands. The others offer their goodbyes before they leave the room. 

Once they’re gone, Wooyoung leaves next, returning with a wet hand towel. He presses on Seonghwa’s wound, softly apologizing when he grimaces against the pressure. 

“Seonghwa, I’ve never seen you act like that before..” Yeosang says. “You really like him, don’t you?”

Seonghwa takes a moment to let his mind wander to the demon. 

“I- yeah, I think I really do.” He smiles, finally admitting it to himself and his friends. 

“What are you going to do?” Yeosang asks.

Their heads turn when the door creaks open again, Hongjoong walking in the room hesitantly, cutting off the answer that Seonghwa doesn’t have.

“Seonghwa, how are you feeling? Are you okay?” Hongjoong walks towards them, his features concerned. 

“Yeah, I’m okay.” Seonghwa assures him.

“Do you want us to take you home?” San asks. 

“Actually, I want to talk to Hongjoong alone.” Seonghwa moves to stand by himself, letting Yeosang and San’s arms drop to their sides. 

“Are you sure you’re okay?” Yeosang turns to him. 

“Yes, I’m sure. You guys just wait downstairs.” 

The three of them voice their agreements and reluctantly walk out the door, Wooyoung handing the book back to Hongjoong before they go. Once they’re gone, leaving only the two of them, Hongjoong stares at the ground, avoiding Seonghwa’s eyes. 

“Seonghwa, I’m really sorry about your head.” Hongjoong starts.

“It’s okay, it was my own fault. Plus, it already stopped bleeding.” Seonghwa shrugs. 

“Why did you do it?” Hongjoong asks. “Why would you do that for me?” 

“I couldn’t let you go back there.” Seonghwa answers simply. 

“But you could’ve died, you risked your life for me.”

“I’d risk anything to keep you from going back.”

“I- I can’t thank you enough...” Hongjoong’s voice is soft as he looks up at him. 

“You’re welcome.” Seonghwa pauses. “But I can’t say that my reasons were completely selfless.” He adds with a small smile.

“Really?” Hongjoong’s face lights up.

“I didn’t want to let you go.” Seonghwa tells him, and the wide smile that Hongjoong gives him makes everything worth it. 

“There’s actually something I need to tell you about.” Hongjoong takes in a breath, holding out the small worn book. “I was reading through this, and there’s a page that says that in rare cases, if a demon is exorcised but there’s enough humanity left in them, the demon will get sent back to Hell, but the human will stay behind.” 

Seonghwa pauses in thought. “So, either it’ll work and you’ll stay here as a human, or…” 

“Or it won’t work and I’ll get sent back to Hell.” Hongjoong confirms.

“No, I don’t want to risk it.” Seonghwa’s voice is firm. “Why can’t you just stay here and live as a demon?” 

“Even if I’m not in Hell, the longer I live as a demon, the more humanity I’ll lose until I’m as corrupt and destructive as the rest of the demons.” Hongjoong explains. 

“But if it doesn’t work, can’t we just say what we said before and bring you back again?” Seonghwa tries, nearing desperation. 

Hongjoong shakes his head. “The chances of summoning me again are almost impossible, and there’s no saying what else would come back next time. It could be so much worse than tonight.” 

“I don’t want to lose you..” Seonghwa whispers. 

“Hwa.” Hongjoong puts a soft hand on Seonghwa’s cheek. “I can’t risk putting you in danger, I can’t risk hurting you.” He pauses. “And I want this, want you, fully, with all of the emotions and feelings that come with being human.” 

Seonghwa leans into Hongjoong’s touch. “Okay.” He finally agrees. 

Hongjoong steps back, his hand falling to his side. He turns away, and walks to the middle of the symbol on the floor. 

“What are you doing?” Seonghwa asks.

“I just want to make sure you’re safe, no matter what happens.”

Seonghwa nods, and he lifts the book with quaking hands, the increasingly familiar latin exorcism meeting him, now seeming more threatening than it ever had. He takes in a shaky breath, looking at Hongjoong standing where three demons had before him. 

“It’s okay.” Hongjoong smiles at him. “Just, promise me you won’t stop reading once you start, okay?” 

“I promise.” Seonghwa nods. 

When he starts, Hongjoong’s eyes slip closed, hiding the endless black. Seonghwa tries to keep his voice even and clear while he speaks, watching Hongjoong for any indicating signs. When Hongjoong’s face twists in pain, his fists clenched by his sides, the lights flickering once more, Seonghwa stutters, but doesn’t let himself stop. 

Once he’s half way through the page, a cry is ripped from Hongjoong, Seonghwa’s heart caught in his throat at the broken sound. Hongjoong falls to his knees, leaning forward to catch himself with his hands, his head hanging low. He lets out another scream, raw and almost defiant. 

“Seonghwa- please, stop.” Hongjoong begs between clenched teeth. He sits back on his heels, tugging at his hair with his hands, curling into himself.

Seonghwa continues, his voice tight, forcing his eyes away from Hongjoong’s small shaking frame, and onto the book in his hands. The room trembles, Seonghwa trembling with it. 

“Please, it hurts.” Hongjoong cries.

Seonghwa feels tears in his eyes at the agony embedded in Hongjoong’s words, everything in him urging him to stop talking, to take away Hongjoong’s pain, but he’d made him a promise. 

He forces every last word out while Hongjoong pleads for him to stop. His chest aches with every passing second, and he freezes when the last word finally leaves his lips. His heart beats heavily, neither of them moving. The only sound that fills the room is Hongjoong’s ragged breaths. 

“Hongjoong?” Seonghwa calls softly. “Are you okay?” 

After what feels like an eternity, Hongjoong sits up, slowly standing on unsteady legs. Seonghwa’s breath hitches when Hongjoong’s face smoothes before he opens his eyes, looking back at him. There’s not a hint of black; they’re bright, a deep warm brown. 

Hongjoong looks down at himself, seemingly in disbelief. Seonghwa can’t begin to imagine what he must be feeling. Hongjoong takes an uncertain step forward, his eyes on the floor, stopping just in front of the line drawn around him. He takes in a deep breath, Seonghwa holding his, and he steps outside of the symbol.

Once he’s on the other side of the circle his head snaps up, his face lit in elation and relief, and Seonghwa breaks into a grin. 

Hongjoong rushes forward and pulls Seonghwa in, crashing their lips together.

Seonghwa gasps, Hongjoong tilting his head to deepen the kiss. Seonghwa’s lips tingle, his head fuzzy, his body buzzing. His hands tangle in Hongjoong’s hair, his skin on fire where the other touches him. He sucks on Hongjoong’s tongue, driven wild with the low moans drawn from him. 

Hongjoong’s hands grip his waist, their bodies pressed together. Seonghwa pulls him impossibly closer, craving every part of him now that he’s had a taste. He loses himself to Hongjoong, gives himself up willingly to the feeling of their spit slick lips slotted together. 

He eventually pulls back, his breathing heavy, a wide smile on his face. Hongjoong returns it, and Seonghwa feels weightless, delirious and euphoric that it actually worked, that Hongjoong is human, is  _ his _ . 

“Thank you.” Hongjoong looks at him. Seonghwa thinks he’ll never get used to seeing his brown eyes. “Thank you for not stopping.” 

“I hated every second of it.” Seonghwa rests his hand on the back of Hongjoong’s neck, his forehead against the other’s. 

“Me too. But it was more than worth it. It’s been so long since I could feel like this.” Hongjoong smiles, glowing and radiant, and Seonghwa can’t help but lean in to kiss it off of his face. 

“So what happens now?” Seonghwa asks. 

He’s suddenly overwhelmed with concern; how will his friends react, where will Hongjoong live, what will he do, will he work, go to school? Endless worries flood his mind, making his pulse quicken. 

“Hey, we’ll figure it out.” Hongjoong assures him, running a hand through Seonghwa’s hair soothingly. “We’ll start with getting your roommates not to kill me, and go from there.” 

Seonghwa can’t help but laugh at the ex-demon’s fear of his friends, the tightness bubbling in his chest starting to subside. He looks at Hongjoong, his toothy grin, his hopeful eyes, affection replacing the once glossy, emotionless black. 

While tonight has thrown surprise after surprise at Seonghwa, he’s now assured that they’ll work it out, that he wants to keep Hongjoong by his side. 

Hongjoong steps back, holding his hand out to Seonghwa, who takes it, intertwining their fingers.

“Come on pretty boy.” Hongjoong smiles at him warmly.

Seonghwa blushes at the familiar pet name, and with hope and excitement and Hongjoong’s hand in his, he leads them out the door. 

**Author's Note:**

> I love the holidays, so expect more holiday related stories in the near future!
> 
> Let me know what you thought of this, and thank you for reading!!


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